A National Perspective on Shaping Future Leaders for Justice

A National Perspective on Shaping Future Leaders for Justice

Presented by: Melanie KushnirAmerican Bar Association Center for Pro Bono

www.abaprobono.org

October 5, 2007

Columbus School of Law The Catholic University of America

Washington D.C.

Major Initiatives Leading to Expansion of Law School Pro Bono

1990 Pro Bono Students America 1996 ABA Accreditation Law School Pro Bono Standard 302(e) 1999 Learning to Serve: The Findings and Proposals of the

AALS Commission on Pro Bono and Public Service Opportunities.

2005 ABA Pro Bono Accreditation Standard 302(b)(2) 2006 ABA Resolution 121B – Law School Support and

Promotion of Pro Bono ABA/NLADA Annual Equal Justice Conference 2007 LSC Resolution in Support of Enhanced Private Attorney

Involvement NALP Directory of Legal Employers EJW The E-Guide to Public Service at America’s Law Schools

ABA Model Rule of Professional Conduct 6.1

PRO BONO1. Lawyers should provide 50 hours of pro bono work

annually.2. A majority of that work should be direct representation of

the poor or organizations which serve the poor with no expectation of remuneration.

3. Direct representation of other individuals and organizations can also qualify, including representation at a substantially reduced rate, for certain kinds of public interest issues.

PRO BONO PUBLIC SERVICEProviding law related public service (not direct representation) also counts as pro bono.

Non-legal community service such as building a home for Habitat for Humanity, volunteering time at a soup kitchen, or painting a school, while valuable and worthwhile activities, are generally not considered “pro bono” within the meaning of Model Rule 6.1.

Models of Law School Volunteer Programswww.abaprobono.org/lawschools

Graduation Requirement Programs: Pro Bono Graduation Requirement Program Public Service Graduation Requirement Program Community Service Graduation Requirement Program

Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Programs: Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Program Characterized by a Referral

System with a Coordinator Formal Voluntary Pro Bono Program Characterized by Administrative

Support for Student Group Projects

Independent Student Pro Bono Group Projects with no school-wide pro bono program

Why is NOW a great time to initiate or expand a law school pro bono program?

% of lawyers in… 1980 1991 2000 Private Practice 68% 73% 74% Government 9% 8% 8% Private Industry 10% 9% 8% Retired/Inactive 5% 5% 5% Judiciary 4% 3% 3% Education 1% 1% 1% Legal Aid/Public Defender 2% 1% 1% Private Association 1% 1% 1%

Source: The Lawyer Statistical Report, American Bar Foundation, 1985,1994, 2004 editions

PRACTICE SETTING

Only 1% of the sample reported that pro bono issues received coverage in orientation programs or professional responsibility courses.

Only 3% of graduates observed visible faculty support for pro bono service, or felt that their schools provided adequate clinical opportunities for public interest work.

Only a third of graduates believed that the financial resources devoted to pro bono activities were adequate.

Pro Bono In Principle and In Practice: Public Service and The Professions, Deborah Rhode, Vol. 15 No.9 (September 2005).

Room for Improvement

Benefits of a Law School Pro Bono Program for Students

Provide much needed legal services to persons of limited means

Connect legal theory with practical issues faced by low-income individuals

Develop and enhance legal practice skills Build relationship with practicing attorneys Gain exposure to practice areas Obtain professional experience and enhance resume Make legal education more interesting, relevant and

meaningful Acquire leadership skills Achieve personal fulfillment

Benefits of a Law School Pro Bono Program for Law Schools

Enhance law school’s ties, relationship, reputation and stature within the local community

Enhance and strengthen relationships with alumni Assist law school in recruitment efforts Enables school to demonstrate its commitment to public

service and needs of low-income person in the community.

Foster institution’s education mission Enhance law school’s ties to local legal community,

including bar associations, judiciary, etc. Increase opportunities for faculty research and

scholarship

Pro BonoEmeritus

Rules

CLECredit forPro Bono

StateReportingPolicies Diversity and

SpecialtyBar

Associations

NationalPro BonoAwards

SystematicPro Bono ByLaw Firms,Gov’t and

Corp Legal

138SignatoriesTo Law Firm

Pro BonoChallenge

900 +Pro BonoPrograms

Increased Organized Pro Bono

Findings from the 2005 ABA Data Collection Report

66% of lawyers provide pro bono services to people of limited means and/or to organizations serving the poor

They provide approximately 39 hours of pro bono service annually to persons of limited means or organizations serving the poor

Lawyers provide an additional 38 hours annually of free pro bono service toward securing or protecting civil rights and improving the legal system.

PRO BONO IS

EVERYWHERE!

ABA Pro Bono Accreditation Standard 302(b)(2)

“A law school shall offer substantial opportunities for . . . student participation in pro bono activities . . .”

Interpretation 302-10 of the ABA Pro Bono Accreditation Standard

Pro bono opportunities should at a minimum involve the rendering of meaningful law-related service to persons of limited means or to organizations that serve such persons.

Standard 302(b)(2) does not preclude the inclusion of credit-granting activities within a law school’s overall program of pro bono opportunities so long as law-related non-credit bearing initiatives are also part of that program.

Pro Bono Quiz!

A law student interviews families living in FEMA trailers in Louisiana on issues such as health insurance, school attendance by school-age children, unemployment levels, plans and options for other housing as part of an extensive survey to match these residents with social and legal service providers. Pro Bono?

Pro Bono Quiz!

A student attends a law school with a Public Service Graduation Requirement that requires students to perform law-related public service but is flexible in the form of the service allowing pro bono placements, internships, externships, and a poverty law course to count toward fulfillment of the school’s requirement. The student chooses to take the poverty law course and graduates law school without having participated in a traditional non-credit bearing pro bono opportunity. Pro Bono? Public Service?

Pro Bono Quiz!

Student volunteers for 10 weeks over summer at a legal services office and is not paid by the program (nor are clients paying for services) but receives a $4,000 stipend from a non-profit organization to cover expenses. A $1,000 education voucher? A $250 award from the law school public interest organization?

A Baker’s Dozen Tips for Building An Effective Law School Pro Bono Program

TIP # 1

Establish a Formal Policy that Includes a Definition of

Pro Bono


TIP # 2

Provide Institutional Support


TIP # 3

Assure Adequate Staffing

and Support


TIP # 4

Establish a Location

and Identity


TIP # 5

Develop a Range of Recruitment Strategies


TIP # 6

Broad Range of Placements


TIP # 7

Build Structures for Appropriate Supervision and

Quality Control


TIP # 8

Track Pro Bono


TIP # 9

Build Pro Bono into the Law School Curriculum


TIP # 10

Involve Students in

Program Development and Administration


TIP # 11

Collaborate with Legal Community, Legal Service

Providers and Community-at-Large


TIP # 12

Conduct Outreach to and Collaborate with Alumni


TIP # 13

Recognize Students and Faculty

www.abaprobono.org

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A National Perspective on Shaping Future Leaders for Justice